Learning Resources:

The core of the Barbara and Edward Netter Center for Community Partnerships’ work. ABCS students and faculty work with West Philadelphia public schools, local communities of faith and community organizations to solve critical campus and community issues in a variety of areas related to the environment, health, arts and education.

Established in 2003 to provide writing support to Penn students and faculty across the disciplines and is open to Penn students 6 days a week. In addition to providing individual writing guidance and feedback to our students, the Writing Center also presents writing workshops across campus, consults with faculty and assists them with designing and responding to writing assignments, and engages in community outreach. The Writing Center is staffed by friendly, well-qualified peer and faculty writing specialists who enjoy working with other writers, from freshmen to doctoral candidates. We are ready to help you with any aspect of the writing process:

Has helped hundreds of students find internships in Washington, engaged hundreds of alumni in mentoring and hiring interns from Penn, and organized dozens of events designed to give Penn students opportunities to explore some of the many fascinating topics addressed in the public policy arena and to meet some of the most important decision-makers in Washington.

Provides faculty, staff, and students at the University access to the university’s collection of and subscriptions to academic journals, magazines, newspapers, legal reviews, and other reference guides by topic area.

A web-based business data research service from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. WRDS is the de facto standard for business data, providing researchers worldwide with instant access to financial, economic, and marketing data through a uniform, web-based interface. This hosted data service has become the locus for quantitative data research and is recognized by the academic and financial research community around the world as the leading business intelligence tool. WRDS provides access to COMPUSTAT, CRSP, IBES, NYSE-TAQ, Bureau van Dijk, Global Insight, OptionMetrics and other important business research databases.

<div class="lw_profiles_image"><span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/647-john-schifalacqua"><img src="/live/image/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/550,0,2662,2110/2177_jon_schifalacqua.rev.1499446412.jpg" alt="John Schifalacqua" title="John Schifalacqua" class="lw_image" width="240" height="240" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/550,0,2662,2110/2177_jon_schifalacqua.rev.1499446412.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/550,0,2662,2110/2177_jon_schifalacqua.rev.1499446412.jpg 3x" data-max-w="3200" data-max-h="2110"/></a></span></div><div class="lw_profiles_name"><a href="/live/profiles/647-john-schifalacqua">John Schifalacqua</a></div><div class="lw_profiles_13"/><div class="lw_profiles_14"/><div class="lw_profiles_64">L’19</div><div class="lw_profiles_67"><p> I’m most interested in regulatory affairs and litigation; the intersection of the two spans a broad range of substantive law that enormously influences public policy. People don’t always realize the effect that agency rulemaking and litigation has for driving public policy. The legal relationships between agencies, the government, and the public is at the epicenter of administrative law and it’s increasingly the space where the most consequential developments in law direct public policy. Government agencies often have broad discretion on how to execute their authority according to congressional statutes and I’m interested in being involved in the spaces that work through the legal challenges involved. I’ve been fortunate to have my hand in a number of related areas working in DC in previous jobs, spanning from law enforcement, white-collar defense, international affairs, and general litigation. It’s great to be with the District Court this summer to witness the complexity and development of these fields. I hope to stay involved in administrative law after school. </p></div><div class="lw_profiles_65"><p> U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia</p></div>

<div class="lw_profiles_image"><span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/506-louis-davis"><img src="/live/image/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1244,1243/1595_louisdaviswhartonppi2.rev.1468268017.jpg" alt="Louis Davis" title="Louis Davis" class="lw_image" width="240" height="240" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1244,1243/1595_louisdaviswhartonppi2.rev.1468268017.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1244,1243/1595_louisdaviswhartonppi2.rev.1468268017.jpg 3x" data-max-w="1244" data-max-h="1243"/></a></span></div><div class="lw_profiles_name"><a href="/live/profiles/506-louis-davis">Louis Davis</a></div><div class="lw_profiles_13"/><div class="lw_profiles_14"/><div class="lw_profiles_64">C’17</div><div class="lw_profiles_67"><p> US-Cuba relations have been a passion of mine since freshman year. More broadly, I am interested in international trade, a field directly relevant to my summer internship at the DOC. I also participated in the Penn in Washington program this past spring, through which I interned full-time at the State Department with the Bureau of International Security & Nonproliferation to expand upon my interest in WMD issues and arms control.</p></div><div class="lw_profiles_65"><p> Cuba Desk, Office of Latin America and the Caribbean (International Trade Administration), U.S. Department of Commerce</p></div>

<div class="lw_profiles_image"><span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/645-stephanie-wu"><img src="/live/image/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1557,1556/2134_wu.rev.1496241838.jpg" alt="Stephanie Wu" title="Stephanie Wu" class="lw_image" width="240" height="240" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1557,1556/2134_wu.rev.1496241838.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1557,1556/2134_wu.rev.1496241838.jpg 3x" data-max-w="1558" data-max-h="2337"/></a></span></div><div class="lw_profiles_name"><a href="/live/profiles/645-stephanie-wu">Stephanie Wu</a></div><div class="lw_profiles_13">W’20</div><div class="lw_profiles_14"><p> I know that studying and working in public policy in the United States will enable me to shape issues which have a much more significant international impact.</p></div><div class="lw_profiles_64"/><div class="lw_profiles_67"/><div class="lw_profiles_65"/>

<div class="lw_profiles_image"><span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/135-jackie-kier"><img src="/live/image/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/0,69,462,531/655_jackiekerrprofile.rev.1412126917.jpg" alt="Jackie Kier" title="Jackie Kier" class="lw_image" width="240" height="240" data-max-w="462" data-max-h="660"/></a></span></div><div class="lw_profiles_name"><a href="/live/profiles/135-jackie-kier">Jackie Kier</a></div><div class="lw_profiles_13">MBA, 2015</div><div class="lw_profiles_14"><p> “I feel lucky to have seen first hand how entrepreneurial pockets of government can be, and I’m hoping to encourage my classmates to direct some of their incredible brain power to tackling big problems in the public and social sphere.”</p></div><div class="lw_profiles_64"/><div class="lw_profiles_67"/><div class="lw_profiles_65"/>

<div class="lw_profiles_image"><span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/395-sean-egan"><img src="/live/image/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/216,4,979,768/1434_seanegan2.rev.1454074535.jpg" alt="Sean Egan" title="Sean Egan" class="lw_image" width="240" height="240" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/216,4,979,768/1434_seanegan2.rev.1454074535.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/216,4,979,768/1434_seanegan2.rev.1454074535.jpg 3x" data-max-w="1650" data-max-h="1100"/></a></span></div><div class="lw_profiles_name"><a href="/live/profiles/395-sean-egan">Sean Egan</a></div><div class="lw_profiles_13">W’18</div><div class="lw_profiles_14"><p> “I have gained an understanding of how the research process works. I have also learned to think of monetary policy as far reaching and much more complex than most of the public believes.”</p></div><div class="lw_profiles_64"/><div class="lw_profiles_67"/><div class="lw_profiles_65"/>

<div class="lw_profiles_image"><span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/550-will-fields"><img src="/live/image/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/249,32,1716,1499/1892_willfields_4483.rev.1480514183.jpg" alt="Will Fields" title="Will Fields" class="lw_image" width="240" height="240" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/249,32,1716,1499/1892_willfields_4483.rev.1480514183.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/249,32,1716,1499/1892_willfields_4483.rev.1480514183.jpg 3x" data-max-w="2048" data-max-h="1508"/></a></span></div><div class="lw_profiles_name"><a href="/live/profiles/550-will-fields">Will Fields</a></div><div class="lw_profiles_13">MBA</div><div class="lw_profiles_14"><p> I think that I would like to work within the policy department of a large corporate entity, or work within philanthropy. But much like my desires to pursue investment banking opportunities in 2008, I know that these goals may change!</p></div><div class="lw_profiles_64"/><div class="lw_profiles_67"/><div class="lw_profiles_65"/>

<div class="lw_profiles_image"><span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/498-bryce-arbour"><img src="/live/image/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/481,26,1297,843/1543_brycearbour2.rev.1461946671.jpg" alt="Bryce Arbour" title="Bryce Arbour" class="lw_image" width="240" height="240" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/481,26,1297,843/1543_brycearbour2.rev.1461946671.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/481,26,1297,843/1543_brycearbour2.rev.1461946671.jpg 3x" data-max-w="1650" data-max-h="1238"/></a></span></div><div class="lw_profiles_name"><a href="/live/profiles/498-bryce-arbour">Bryce Arbour</a></div><div class="lw_profiles_13">C’16</div><div class="lw_profiles_14"><p> “My public policy interest and knowledge were probably the biggest reasons I landed interviews at several firms and eventually a position at BlackRock,” Bryce says. “Being able to discuss the minutiae of financial regulatory issues and the merits of different policy proposals showed firms that I had done my homework and was genuinely interested” in understanding all aspects of working in finance.</p></div><div class="lw_profiles_64"/><div class="lw_profiles_67"/><div class="lw_profiles_65"/>

<div class="lw_profiles_image"><span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/509-courtney-sloan"><img src="/live/image/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/135,0,1732,1597/1641_fullsizerender.rev.1470145128.jpg" alt="Courtney Sloan" title="Courtney Sloan" class="lw_image" width="240" height="240" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/135,0,1732,1597/1641_fullsizerender.rev.1470145128.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/135,0,1732,1597/1641_fullsizerender.rev.1470145128.jpg 3x" data-max-w="2048" data-max-h="1909"/></a></span></div><div class="lw_profiles_name"><a href="/live/profiles/509-courtney-sloan">Courtney Sloan</a></div><div class="lw_profiles_13"/><div class="lw_profiles_14"/><div class="lw_profiles_64">C’17</div><div class="lw_profiles_67"><p> I’m really interested in education and community development, but I also studied abroad in South Africa last fall and interned at the Department of State last summer, which peaked my interest in international affairs and public diplomacy.</p></div><div class="lw_profiles_65"><p> Department of the Treasury, the Office of Public Affairs</p></div>

<div class="lw_profiles_image"><span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/38-brian-collopy"><img src="/live/image/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/0,0,658,658/473_brian-collopy-head-shot-2.rev.1407275809.jpg" alt="Brian Collopy" title="Brian Collopy" class="lw_image" width="240" height="240" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/4/width/240/height/240/crop/1/src_region/0,0,658,658/473_brian-collopy-head-shot-2.rev.1407275809.jpg 2x" data-max-w="658" data-max-h="691"/></a></span></div><div class="lw_profiles_name"><a href="/live/profiles/38-brian-collopy">Brian Collopy</a></div><div class="lw_profiles_13">C’15</div><div class="lw_profiles_14"><p> “Excited about the impact economics can have on public policy,” Brian has worked tirelessly throughout his undergraduate career in many spheres (health care, education, and housing, to name a few) to investigate ways in which economics can shed light on some of the country’s most glaring problems.</p></div><div class="lw_profiles_64"/><div class="lw_profiles_67"/><div class="lw_profiles_65"/>

<h3>Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED®)</h3><p><strong><img width="180" height="79" alt="" src="/live/image/gid/4/width/180/height/79/481_fred-logo.rev.1407788243.jpg" class="lw_image lw_image481 lw_align_right" data-max-w="222" data-max-h="97"/>An online database consisting of more than 72,000 economic data time series from 54 national, international, public, and private sources.</strong> FRED®, created and maintained by Research Department at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, goes far beyond simply providing data: It combines data with a powerful mix of tools that help the user understand, interact with, display, and disseminate the data.</p><p> Quick link to data page: <a href="http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/tags/series" target="_blank">http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/tags/series</a></p><p>See all <a href="/data-resources/">data and resources</a> »</p>

<h3>National Bureau of Economic Research (Public Use Data Archive)</h3><p><img width="180" height="43" alt="" src="/live/image/gid/4/width/180/height/43/478_nber.rev.1407530465.jpg" class="lw_image lw_image478 lw_align_right" data-max-w="329" data-max-h="79"/>Founded in 1920, the <strong>National Bureau of Economic Research</strong> is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization dedicated to promoting a greater understanding of how the economy works. The NBER is committed to undertaking and disseminating unbiased economic research among public policymakers, business professionals, and the academic community.</p><p> Quick Link to <strong>Public Use Data Archive</strong>: <a href="http://www.nber.org/data/" target="_blank">http://www.nber.org/data/</a></p><p>See all <a href="/data-resources/">data and resources</a> »</p>

<h3>The Penn World Table</h3><p> The Penn World Table provides purchasing power parity and national income accounts converted to international prices for 189 countries/territories for some or all of the years 1950-2010.</p><p><a href="https://pwt.sas.upenn.edu/php_site/pwt71/pwt71_form.php" target="_blank">Quick link.</a> </p><p>See all <a href="/data-resources/">data and resources</a> »</p>

<h3>National Center for Education Statistics</h3><p><strong><img width="400" height="80" alt="" src="/live/image/gid/4/width/400/height/80/479_nces.rev.1407787656.jpg" class="lw_image lw_image479 lw_align_right" data-max-w="400" data-max-h="80"/>The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the primary federal entity for collecting and analyzing data related to education in the U.S. and other nations.</strong> NCES is located within the U.S. Department of Education and the Institute of Education Sciences. NCES has an extensive Statistical Standards Program that consults and advises on methodological and statistical aspects involved in the design, collection, and analysis of data collections in the Center. To learn more about the NCES, <a href="http://nces.ed.gov/about/" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p><p> ﻿Quick link to NCES Data Tools: <a href="http://nces.ed.gov/datatools/index.asp?DataToolSectionID=4" target="_blank">http://nces.ed.gov/datatools/index.asp?DataToolSectionID=4</a></p><p> Quick link to Quick Tables and Figures: <a href="http://nces.ed.gov/quicktables/" target="_blank">http://nces.ed.gov/quicktables/</a></p><p> Quick link to NCES Fast Facts (Note: The primary purpose of the Fast Facts website is to provide users with concise information on a range of educational issues, from early childhood to adult learning.): <a href="http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/" target="_blank">http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/#</a></p><p>See all <a href="/data-resources/">data and resources</a> »</p>

<h3>Congressional Budget Office</h3><p><img width="180" height="180" alt="" src="/live/image/gid/4/width/180/height/180/380_cbo-logo.rev.1406822035.jpg" class="lw_image lw_image380 lw_align_right" data-max-w="180" data-max-h="180"/>Since its founding in 1974, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has produced independent analyses of budgetary and economic issues to support the Congressional budget process.</p><p> The agency is strictly nonpartisan and conducts objective, impartial analysis, which is evident in each of the dozens of reports and hundreds of cost estimates that its economists and policy analysts produce each year. CBO does not make policy recommendations, and each report and cost estimate discloses the agency’s assumptions and methodologies. <strong>CBO provides budgetary and economic information in a variety of ways and at various points in the legislative process.</strong> Products include baseline budget projections and economic forecasts, analysis of the President’s budget, cost estimates, analysis of federal mandates, working papers, and more.</p><p> Quick link to Products page: <a href="http://www.cbo.gov/about/our-products" target="_blank">http://www.cbo.gov/about/our-products</a></p><p> Quick link to Topics: <a href="http://www.cbo.gov/topics" target="_blank">http://www.cbo.gov/topics</a></p><p>See all <a href="/data-resources/">data and resources</a> »</p>

<h3>Internal Revenue Service: Tax Statistics</h3><p><img width="155" height="200" alt="" src="/live/image/gid/4/width/155/height/200/486_irs_logo.rev.1407789424.jpg" class="lw_image lw_image486 lw_align_left" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/4/width/155/height/200/486_irs_logo.rev.1407789424.jpg 2x" data-max-w="463" data-max-h="596"/>Find statistics on business tax, individual tax, charitable and exempt organizations, IRS operations and budget, and income (SOI), as well as statistics by form, products, publications, papers, and other IRS data.</p><p> Quick link to <strong>Tax Statistics, where you will find a wide range of tables, articles, and data</strong> that describe and measure elements of the U.S. tax system: <a href="http://www.irs.gov/uac/Tax-Stats-2" target="_blank">http://www.irs.gov/uac/Tax-Stats-2</a></p><p>See all <a href="/data-resources/">data and resources</a> »</p>